Dragon Ball Z: REDUX
by DancingPirate
Summary: A dark and gritty retelling of Dragon Ball Z. Not a straight up novelisation as such, but it sticks pretty rigidly to canon and aims to be written in the spirit of Dragon Ball Z.
1. Prologue

PROLOGUE : A distant planet

**PROLOGUE : A distant planet**

Underneath a grim crimson sky, three warriors feasted triumphantly around a campfire. Around them, the smouldering ruins of Emonel - a once proud planet – told the tale of a slaughter, the genocide of an entire race of people at the hands of mighty and merciless soldiers. For miles there was nought but fiery rubble where cities had once stood proud and once barren wastelands were littered with the corpses of Emonelian soldiers and civilians alike.

"The planet Korma, huh?" grumbled the larger of the trio as he bit into what looked to be a large, cooked animal leg. The meat had not been very well prepared, and dark red juices dribbled messily down his chin. "Never heard of it."

"I'm not surprised, - it's on the other side of the galaxy…" said another man, much shorter than the one he addressed: Nappa. Unlike the larger male, this one had a full head of hair which was naturally spiked upwards to a tip. The strange armour he wore was not unlike his associates, yet his commanding tone and stern presence marked this man as the leader of the group.

"I have," claimed the third and final speaker. He was perhaps the most bizarre in appearance, with wild back-length hair and a peculiar smile. Clad in the same style armour as his comrades, this particular warrior seemed to be at a midpoint in physical build between the other two men. "Some say the inhabitants of Korma are almost as powerful as us Saiyan warriors! Apparently, they --"

"Preposterous!" barked the shorter man, "We are the finest warriors in the entire universe, Raditz. No other race comes close to our power!"

"Gr… sorry Vegeta."

"Kyah! As strong as the Saiyans! What a load of crap." Nappa bellowed whilst he tucked into his second helping of meat. More of the thick red juice spilled down his chin as he ate in an almost animal fashion.

"Humph… regardless of these Kormians' strength, the condition of the planet is simply superb!" Declared Vegeta proudly. "Lord Freeza is sure to reward us handsomely if we secure it for him." Vegeta explained, before taking a generous gulp from a large bottle of green liquid which he held in one gloved hand. "But I do have my doubts about Planet Korma…"

"It's an easy choice!" Nappa announced, spitting half-chewed food as he yelled. "We should head for Korma immediately and level the damn place!"

A strange silence followed, as Raditz chewed quietly on his food and Vegeta looked deeply into the green liquid swirling in the glass bottle from which he drank. Nappa looked to his superior, an expression of confusion etched upon his rugged, ugly face.

"Prince Vegeta…" Nappa began, confused

"Yes, Nappa?"

"Korma… we are going, right?"

Vegeta remained silent, drumming his long, thin fingers against the cold bottle whilst he contemplated the situation. He took another sip of the chilled liquid, and gasped with satisfaction. Raditz had looked up from his meal now, and was surveying the pair with an aura of confusion about him.

"As a warrior, I can't help but feel the urge to tear every single Kormian to pieces as soon as I can." Vegeta began, smirking, yet as he finished the sentence, his gaze hardened and his voice took a more serious tone. "But as a tactician I cannot ignore the fact that with the natural strength of this race and their immense number, the three of us… might not be enough for the job."

"What!?" the bald Saiyan spat "Surely you cannot be serious? We could crush those damn bugs!"

"Silence, you fool. We are strong and brave, not foolish!" Vegeta barked in retort. His eyes shot Nappa an angry, threatening gaze which the large Saiyan took to be a serious warning, and promptly shut up.

"So… we're just gonna let Korma go? Just like that?" he questioned.

"Of course not!" Vegeta barked, grinning broadly as he drained the last of the green liquid in one final, greedy swig. The Saiyan prince shook his head as his two subordinates looked towards him, eagerly awaiting an explanation.

"Listen," Vegeta said his voice flecked with impatience. "Raditz told us about how his brother was sent to some distant planet as a child… before ours was destroyed, and how he never returned, right?"

"Yes…" Nappa nodded.

"Well," Vegeta said, "Four Saiyan warriors would be more than enough to tackle Kourna!"

"You mean…" Raditz muttered

"Yes, we find the missing Saiyan and convince him to join us."

"Ha! Excellent plan!" Nappa bellowed triumphantly.

"And… if he won't join us?" questioned the youngest Saiyan.

"Then we do what we do best and sell the planet to Freeza!"

Vegeta stood, and approached a large white pod which lay in a small crater towards the edge of the mesa. With a swift kick to a button on the spherical structure the door opened, revealing the spacecraft's comfortable one-man interior. The Saiyan prince leaned into the pod, and began tapping commands into the on-board computer.

"Raditz! What was the name of your brother?" he asked, ceasing his operation of the computer.

"Kara... Kan... oh, Kakarrot."

"Hmph, a lower classman's name." Vegeta grumbled, as an image of the mysterious Saiyan named Kakarrot as a baby appeared on the small screen. Even one such as Vegeta who wasn't always swift to notice resemblances between family members could recognise the similarity in appearance between Raditz and his elusive sibling.

"All right." Vegeta said, emerging from his pod. "Raditz, since this Kakarrot is your own flesh and blood it is your duty to obtain his alliance. The computer tells me his ship is still stationed on Planet Earth." The prince ordered, marching back towards the ground on which his two Saiyan companions were sitting. "Meanwhile, Nappa and I will deal with those pesky little creatures on Planet Fruise."

Raditz opened his mouth to protest his lone assignment, but decided against it. "Yes, Vegeta." Was all he said whilst standing. He straightened his back, and flexed the muscles in his arms. "I'm sure Kakarrot will be most pleased to join the last of the Saiyan warriors!"

Vegeta nodded in approval, and the Saiyan known as Raditz headed towards his own space pod, hurling the bones from his meal to one side.

"I'll keep in touch via scouter!" Raditz said as he tapped the green-lensed device fastened to his left ear. With that, he opened up the space pod and sat comfortably in the seat which made up the majority of the craft's interior. The white sphere lurched forwards as the jet propulsion system roared into life, spitting the pod a few feet into the air. It hovered for a while as Raditz set the course for Earth, and finally with a giant roar of energy, the Saiyan was hurled towards the stars.

"Think he'll handle it, Vegeta?" Nappa questioned, now onto his fifth portion of food. His superior was pacing atop the mesa, occasionally stopping here and there to practice his punching technique.

"Of course, Nappa." Vegeta replied dryly, jabbing at an invisible opponent.

"So… what kinda reward are we talkin' for taking Korma?"

"Humph… I don't know, but something big. Then again, after your little outburst in front of Freeza last time we met with him, I wouldn't be surprised if he rewards us with _dust_." The prince commented harshly. He furrowed his brow, and stopped pacing, fixing his gaze on a distant glittering star.

"Damn you, Freeza!!" He cried, his voice booming out into the dead night sky. Clenched fists shook at the warrior's side. "Who would have thought it? I was prince of the greatest of races! And now look at me… nothing more than a tyrant's pawn!!"

"Vegeta…" Nappa started, standing for the first time in hours. Bits of torn meat and crumbs dropped from his armour.

"Silence, Nappa. We have business to attend to."

With that, the two Saiyans headed towards their respective crafts and without a single thought for the dead planet of Emonel, they shot into space simultaneously, ready to wipe another race of people from the galaxy.

It took several minutes of the loud _chirp! chirp! chirp! _in Raditz's ear to finally awaken him. Looking at the calendar displayed on the small computer, he was told that three Earth days (he figured he may as well get used to the planet's time system before arriving) had passed since leaving Emonel.

/GOOD DAY, RADITZ!/ said the soft electronic voice on the ship's computer. /YOU WILL SOON BE ARRIVING AT YOUR DESTINATION!/

The Saiyan shrugged. He must have heard the same damn speech at least a thousand times and it was starting to get more than a little repetitive.

/NOW APPROACHING PLANET EARTH. PREPARE FOR LANDING, AND GOOD LUCK./

With just a few minutes before the voice would brief him on the safety checks, Raditz's lips curled into a smile.

"We will meet at last… brother!"


	2. Chapter 001

PROLOGUE : A distant planet

**01. Dark shadows over Earth! A new threat arrives.**

Chev watched the smoke dancing up into the hot midday air, puffing happily on a cigarette as he leaned against his wagon. The day's work had been long and arduous, with little room for rest. After moving onto his father's farm three years ago, Chev couldn't even remember the last time he had enjoyed a day off. He looked out over the massive herd of animals he had been tending to for so long, and let out a lengthy, smoky breath of boredom. Sweat had matted his thick black hair to his head, and his overalls were covered in dirt.

"Damn…" he groaned miserably to nobody in particular, drawing the word out into one long complaint. "I don't reckon I've worked this hard for years… phew!"

With that, the farmer chucked the cigarette butt to one side and set back to work. Grabbing and old pitchfork from the back of his truck, he adjusted his flimsily crafted straw hat and set to work, clumsily shovelling hay into the back of the truck. The animals in the field were pesky little things, and from time to time they would come up close to Chev, sniffing at him and occasionally pecking at his ears. One particularly adventurous creature crept up behind him, and began nibbling on the back of his fat neck.

"Damn! Shoo! Friggin birds!" Chev swung at one of them with his pitchfork, his fat face now red from the hassle. "Why does _he_ always get to stay inside the farmhouse…?" He moaned, referring to his lazy brother who allegedly handled the accounts.

Fed up, the farmer heaved one last wad of hay, and then hurled the pitchfork back into the truck. With a depressed grumble, Chev made his way to the front of the vehicle and hopped into the driver's seat. Turning the ignition key, the truck's aging engine rumbled weakly into life. Chev released the handbrake and put his foot on the accelerator, headed for the farmhouse. Flicking the radio to a country music station, the bespectacled man hummed along with the song and tapped his fingers lazily on the steering wheel.

"Jeesh," he moaned, looking up lazily at the burning sun which sat like a jewel in the beautiful azure sky. Soft white clouds moved lazily across the sky, decorating the horizon beautifully.

"Wh… what?!" Chev gasped, pushing his glasses onto his forehead and rubbing one stinging eye with the heel of his palm. A black object had just streaked across the sun's light, eerily silhouetted by the glowing orb. "Oh..." he said with a smile as he realised the mysterious black object was, in fact, a large bird. "Heh… almost got excited then…" Chev laughed to himself, nodding his head in order to slide his glasses back down onto his nose.

Even as he said this, a large roar of air to his right caught his attention, and the driver's head instinctively snapped to face the source of the noise. Immediately, he was met with the sight of what looked to be a meteor hurling through the sky, missing his truck by what felt like mere inches. Displaced air from the flying object's aerial path was enough to shake the entire vehicle's structure. Chev swore, and slammed on the brakes which caused the truck to skid to a halt, almost tipping over onto its side as it slid for some metres.

"I-I-It's a meteor!" he stammered, opening the truck's door. Chev observed the freshly formed crater with great hesitance, his jaw dropped in disbelief. "M… maybe I should go and look at it…" he reasoned, hopping out of the rusty blue wagon. The farmer took a few steps, before turning back to the truck, reaching in to procure his weapon – a cheap rifle given to him by his father.

Chev approached the lip of the crater, and peered into it with a look of disbelief plastered upon his unattractive face. A small white sphere lay like a pearl in the centre of the newly created blemish upon Earth's surface. Chev figured the object couldn't have been much larger than his truck, but something didn't look right about it – and it certainly wasn't a meteor. A circular red window on what could only be assumed to be the front of the orb revealed it to be something else entirely, as though someone – or something – was in fact within the fallen sphere.

"Wh…what in the world is this?!" Chev yelped, taking a few cautious steps backwards. As if in answer to his question, a loud hiss came from the object once thought by him to be a meteorite. Visibility was poor due to the steam released from the object as well as all the dust in the air, but Chev could still not believe his eyes. A door was opening on the pod, and a humanoid silhouette was emerging from the craft's interior.

"A… A… Alien!!" Chev cried, readying his gun. His eyes were wide with fear, and his hands were shaking wildly. If Chev hadn't been paralysed with dread, he would have run away as fast as possible. "Do you come in peace?!" he cried, voice breaking. The smoke began to clear, and the visitor from outer space was revealed.

Although almost precisely human in appearance, there was something about the man which marked him as a member of another race altogether. His thick matted black hair cascaded down his back, which – like the rest of his upper body – was protected by armour fashioned from materials not recognised by those who dwelled upon Earth. In addition to the black material worn on the torso, brown guards on the shoulders and around the waist provided additional protection for this man dressed in attire which clearly revealed that he was in fact a warrior. The alien straightened his back, revealing properly an excellent posture kept by a man with an impeccably conditioned body. Bizarrely, what Chev could have sworn was a tail was wrapped in a belt-like fashion around the man's waist.

"So…" he said loudly. His voice was sharp and cold, slicing through Chev's very being. "The inhabitants of this world are still alive."

"What… who are you?!" Chev whimpered upon hearing this, waddling backwards in terror. The alien man smirked, and hopped out of the crater in which his craft had landed. Now just mere feet away from Chev, the warrior smirked as the green-lensed scouter attached to his left ear began to chirp.

"Power level… five?" he said with a malicious smile, tapping small buttons on the white section of the device. "Surely… Kakarrot could not have failed here!"

The alien took a few steps forward, and Chev aimed his gun towards the mysterious soldier.

"Not another step!" he demanded, sounding remarkably brave considering his current situation. "Stay away! I'm warning you!" The alien simply smirked and took another step. Then another.

Chev fired.

Quick as a flash, the armour clad invader moved his hand in front of his face, palm closed. Chev looked on, bewildered.

"What?" the alien questioned, that malicious grin still playing on his lips. "You think this is enough to take down a Saiyan?!" With that, the warrior rolled the bullet onto his finger, and laughed under his breath.

"My turn."

The Saiyan brushed his thumb forwards quickly and in a true testament to his strength the bullet shot forwards faster than it had left the gun, connecting sharply with Chev's skull. Blood sprayed out from the point of entry, and the farmer slumped dead on the burned ground beneath him.

"Feh." The Saiyan spat in disgust. "A planet of weaklings." Raditz moved his hand back towards the scouter, and used its functions to search for any higher power levels. Suddenly, the searching function snapped to a location, revealing a sufficiently high reading.

"Not far from here…" he said to himself, as the scouter whirred and beeped. "Could that be you… Kakarrot?!"

Raditz launched himself into the air, his body wrapped in a bright white aura as he flew towards the mountainous regions north of the farm.

The crystal blue lake shimmered in the beautiful summer sun, reflecting almost perfectly the trees which lined its perimeter. All over the aquatic expanse, fish leaped in and out of the water, as if taunting the young fisherman stood at the lakeside.

"See, Gohan!" Goku exclaimed, pointing with his one free hand towards a large jumping fish. "I told you there would be plenty of fish around at this time of year." The martial artist smiled at the small boy perched quite happily on his shoulder, who seemed genuinely fascinated by the behaviour of the fish in the lake. He was dressed in a white vest with green trousers fastened by a white belt.

"Wow, daddy!" he laughed, as one of the fish back-flipped out of the water before flopping back in again. "And you can really catch those?" He asked inquisitively, looking with disbelief at his father.

"Of course I can Gohan!" Goku replied with a beaming grin before gently setting the child down on the ground. "Just stay right there…"

Lifting off his orange martial arts gi top, Goku then removed his dark blue undershirt as well. As a keen and powerful fighter, Goku's physical condition was without a doubt at its peak, only marred by the battle scars obtained through many conflicts which decided the fate of the planet. Goku began rotating his arms in a circular motion, his keen gaze fixed upon the lake.

"I used to do this all the time when I was your age… maybe a little older…" Goku explained, whilst he unfastened his boots, which he placed neatly alongside the rest of the clothing which he had removed. "I might be a little rusty, but here goes… nothing!"

With that, Goku leaped high into the air, almost as if he was defying gravity. Gohan's mouth dropped in amazement as his acrobatic father dived into the lake head first. Underwater, Goku's grin was broadening. The sensation of hunting for fish he had long since forgotten after settling down with Chi-Chi some years ago was returning to him and as he swam swiftly through the chilled lake, the young father felt like a child once more.

_Looks like dinner _he thought, as he spotted a particularly large, meaty fish swimming slowly alongside him. In the blink of an eye, Goku had leaped upon the gigantic swimmer, his muscular arms wrapped around its body to halt its movement. The fish flailed frantically to no avail, as Goku pushed off the bottom of the lake, launching himself out of the water. Steering himself in mid-air, Goku touched down next to Gohan again. This time however, another person was present at the lakeside, with an angry stare fixed upon Goku.

"Oh, hi Chi-Chi!" Goku said with a beaming smile. "Look what I caught, a nice big fish for -" Goku stopped himself mid sentence, looking at the expression on his now furious wife's face. Although he was a strong and determined warrior, there wasn't much Goku feared more than Chi-Chi.

"Goku!" She barked, shoving his clothes at him "This is _not_ teaching Gohan about nature!"

"Wh… what?!" Goku stammered as he dressed himself. "We're in the woods aren't we? That's nature!" Chi-Chi's expression hardened, as she placed her hands defiantly on her hips.

Even before Gohan's name had been decided, Chi-Chi had firmly chosen for him to become a scholar as oppose to a warrior as Goku would have wanted. Of course it had caused many arguments in the past, yet somehow Chi-Chi always seemed to be victorious in the conflicts.

"Gohan, come with me." Chi-Chi demanded, grabbing the young boy's hand as she dragged him back up the path towards the Son family home. "You are never to try that, understand?" Gohan's mother turned back towards Goku, fuming. "He might _drown_, Goku!"

Left alone at the lakeside, Goku sat down playing with a long piece of grass which he had plucked from beside him. He knew Chi-Chi wanted the best for Gohan, but what was the boy ever going to learn about the real world with his nose buried in books for the rest of his life? It almost seemed as though Chi-Chi was saying Goku had lived _his _life the wrong way as well – since the age of twelve he had done nothing much more than hunt for Dragon Balls and compete in the Tenkai'ichi Budokai.

Goku released the blade, which fluttered away on a summer breeze, as did his thoughts on the matter. The young father-of-one picked himself up, and headed back up the path behind Chi-Chi and Gohan. The swift-moving tan skinned male soon caught up with his wife and son, scooping up Gohan from behind, sitting the small boy on his shoulders. Gohan laughed with happiness, ruffling his father's wild black hair. Chi-Chi looked at Goku and flashed him a smile, which the male warmly returned with a look that told the beautiful woman he was sorry. There was something of a special bond between the two of them; ever since the day Goku had married Chi-Chi, he knew no matter how often her anger got the better of her, she would still love him – and he would love her in return. In the Son household, arguments were swiftly forgotten more often than not.

"So, Goku, it'll be the first time you see the guys in what… five years?" Asked Chi-Chi. Her husband looked upwards, calculating the dates.

"Wow… I didn't realise it had been that long." He said with an embarrassed grin. "You should come too, Chi-Chi, it'll be fun."

"No, no, it's okay Goku. I don't know them as well as you do anyway." She responded as the family approached the house. Goku shrugged, and placed Gohan gently down on the floor. The kid wriggled his tail, before darting inside.

"Hey, wash up, Gohan!" called Goku as his son disappeared into the small home. Chi-Chi was looking at Goku, smiling.

"Isn't he cute?" she mused, clapping her hands together with pride. "Oh, my little Gohan… looks just like his daddy!" she laughed as Goku wrapped is arms around her in an embrace. The fighter kissed his wife's forehead, and told her that he loved her. Warmly returning the gesture, Chi-Chi pulled herself more tightly towards her husband.

"I want another," she giggled with a nod towards Gohan's room.

"Really?" Goku replied. Chi-Chi frowned for a moment, and then decided it was best to leave the matter alone for now – there would be plenty of time to discuss such things after Goku's visit to Muten Roshi's.

The youngest member of the Son family soon emerged from his bedroom, clad in a fancy yellow surcoat and a ret hat, atop which sat an orange ball, roughly the size of a fist. Four burning red stars were emblazoned upon the faintly glowing surface of the clearly magical orb. Goku's eyes widened as he saw the object worn proudly by his child.

"Gohan, are you ready to meet your dad's friends?" questioned the protector of Earth, squatting down to the level of his son. Gohan grumbled in a shy fashion which was not unlike him – Goku blamed the lack of outdoor activity.

"C'mon!" He insisted, picking up Gohan as he did so often. The child perched happily once more on his father's shoulder.

"You be careful, Gohan." Chi-Chi said as she kissed her son's cheek. Goku leaned towards his wife expectantly.

"Don't I get one?" he asked. Chi-Chi mock-pouted and shook her finger.

"If you bring Gohan back in one piece you do." She promised.

With that, father and son stepped outside of the house. Goku called "Kinto'un!" and promptly, a flying yellow cloud arrived at his feet. The young father leaped atop it, setting Gohan down next to him. The boy's face was a picture of joy – it was a rare occurrence for his mother to permit a journey on Kinto'un which made it an experience to be truly relished.

"Be careful!" Chi-Chi wailed, waving her arms madly in farewell. The cloud zoomed away into the distance, disappearing out of sight within mere moments.


End file.
